Skip to content

Greater Victoria Harbour Authority’s second steel shipment arrives safely

The GVHA’s original shipment was lost at sea in December 2018
19351387_web1_191112-VNE-steel
The steel for the new mooring dolphin extension has arrived at the Greater Victoria Harbour Authority. (File contributed/ GVHA)

The Greater Victoria Harbour Authority (GVHA) is breathing a sigh of relief as the final components required for its new mooring dolphin extension arrived safely Tuesday morning.

The three-metre-wide,64-metre long large-diametre pile weighs 204 tonnes and arrived from China via the Artic Tuk after a first attempt at the shipment was lost in a catastrophic storm in Dec. 2018.

READ MORE: GVHA waits on second shipment of steel following cargo sinkage

The loss of the first shipment meant that the GVHA had to come up with alternative plans for its incoming cruise ships, most specifically for its largest visitor to date: The Royal Carribean’s Ovation of the Seas.

The steel for the new mooring dolphin extension has arrived at the Greater Victoria Harbour Authority. (File contributed/ GVHA)

For the 2019 season, the Ovation was moored at Pier A, but with more restrictions since the location wasn’t optimal for high-winds.

The piece will help construct the 58-metre mooring dolphin extension of Pier B and will allow for the safe moorage of the quantum-class sized cruise ships – those that reach around 350 metres long.

ALSO READ: Greater Victoria Harbour Authority putting $7 million into pier investments

The steel cost between $3-4 million, and the project in total will cost $6.8 million, making it the latest capital infrastructural investment in the GVHA’s history.

Construction of the dolphin extension will take place over five months and will be completed for thecoming cruise ship season, which begins on April 3, 2020.

nicole.crescenzi@vicnews.com

Like us on Facebook Send a Tweet to @NicoleCrescenziand follow us on Instagram